1
Squirrel's Pick Squirrel's PickThe best game on this page. If you only try one, try this. Budget Pick Budget PickThe best game here for the least money.
City BuilderColony SimMedieval
$19.99 ~37.2 hr median no co-op complexity: light 93.5% of 31k
The Squirrel's verdictKingdoms and Castles offers a finished medieval kingdom sim with clear building progression, siege combat, and a tutorial that doesn't contradict itself — areas where reviewers found Worshippers of Cthulhu lacking. Released in 2017 with a 93.5% positive rating, it focuses on managing a growing kingdom against raiding threats, with a median playtime around 37 hours. No cosmic horror, no cult mechanics, just a polished medieval loop.
Not for you if the Lovecraftian atmosphere was the draw, or you want active new content — reviews note limited updates since release.
2
City BuilderBase-BuildingColony Sim
$19.99 ~62.7 hr median co-op complexity: moderate 90.5% of 10k
The Squirrel's verdictKingdoms Reborn centers on the same resource-chain and settlement-growth loop, but adds co-op support, multiple cultures, and a card-based build menu. It suits players drawn to Worshippers' management structure who also want multiplayer options. Median playtime reaches around 63 hours. Reviews praise the co-op implementation but flag that late-game play can feel repetitive and trading-dominant over colony depth.
Not for you if the Lovecraftian cult atmosphere was the actual draw, or you want deep colony simulation rather than a trade and kingdom management loop.
3
City BuilderAutomationRTS
$29.99 ~25.7 hr median no co-op complexity: light 91.9% of 8k
The Squirrel's verdictBoth are colony sims built on resource-balancing loops: villagers assigned to production chains, buildings feeding buildings, tension from managing throughput. Where Worshippers buries that under half-finished cosmic-horror systems, The Wandering Village commits fully to its mechanics, running you through distinct ecosystems that shift which buildings work. Trades atmosphere for a finished, functioning loop.
Not for you if you want genuine difficulty or narrative choices that carry weight, since multiple reviewers found it easy and the ending mostly cosmetic.
4
City BuilderColony SimEconomy
Cozy CozyLow-stress and wholesome — a game to unwind with.
$20.99 ~17.9 hr median no co-op complexity: light 85.2% of 8k
The Squirrel's verdictFabledom covers the same base-building fundamentals — worker huts, resource chains, villager needs, interrupting events — wrapped in a fairytale visual style and a straightforward tech tree. Reviewers describe the early game as genuinely fun, though the tech tree runs in a straight line and most players see everything within roughly 18 hours. A reported starvation bug affects late-game progression on PC.
Not for you if you need replayability across multiple runs, want cosmic horror atmosphere, or the starvation bug blocking the nobles segment is a dealbreaker.
5
Closest Match Closest MatchThe most similar game to the anchor, by what players say.
Colony SimCraftingMedieval
$24.99 ~44.6 hr median no co-op complexity: moderate 83% of 1k
The Squirrel's verdictNoble Fates is a Rimworld-style colony manager with z-levels, third-person pawn control, random world generation, and a character relationship system built on granular likes and dislikes. It drops the cult theme entirely for a quirky fantasy setting. Reviewers cite same-session bug fixes pushed by developers and consistent patch activity as distinguishing the game from abandoned titles in the genre.
Not for you if you want the Lovecraftian cult theme, or you find fill-in-the-blank dialog for managing character relationships tedious rather than charming.
6
Tribe: Primitive Builder
PC
NatureAutomationResource Management
$19.99 ~16 hr median no co-op complexity: light 81.5% of 788
The Squirrel's verdictTribe: Primitive Builder is a first-person structure-placement game where you farm resources and click to construct buildings — no combat, no predators, no faction threats. It suits players who want a low-pressure building routine; one reviewer praised it specifically for lacking enemies. Median playtime runs around 16 hours across a linear story-driven progression with roughly 20–30 building types and no customization.
Not for you if you want survival stakes, enemy threats, open-ended tribe building, or anything beyond a linear resource-click-place loop.
7
Base-BuildingResource ManagementIlluminati
$21.99 ~21.2 hr median no co-op complexity: light 72.6% of 2k
The Squirrel's verdictHoney, I Joined a Cult suits players who want a visually light, comedic take on cult management: customizable followers, a 1970s charlatan aesthetic, and a more guided research tree than an open colony sim. Median playtime is around 21 hours. Reviews cite game-breaking bugs, developer neglect post-launch, and systems that only skim the surface of actual cult-running mechanics.
Not for you if you want open-ended colony progression, active developer support, or genuine cult-management depth rather than surface-level theming.
8
Political SimHorrorTurn-Based Strategy
Moral Weight Moral WeightHard choices with real consequences are central here.
$12.99 ~6.2 hr median no co-op complexity: moderate 70.2% of 2k
The Squirrel's verdictBoth put you in charge of a Cthulhu-worshipping cult, managing followers and rituals rather than fighting monsters directly. The Shrouded Isle strips this down to a tight villager-assignment and virtue/vice detection loop over a fixed five-year run, with median playtime around 6 hours, instead of Worshippers' sprawling colony-sim systems. Suits players who want the cult-management hook without the naval combat, farming, and building layers.
Not for you if you want choices with lasting weight — reviews describe heavy RNG in the detection mechanics and little replay value once you've beaten it once.